TedsWoodworking.com offers thousands of woodworking projects for a one-time cost. If you go to the bottom of the page and click on the “bed plans” link, he offers 125 bed plans plus all the others. This will give you the most bang for you buck.
Building A Loft Bed DIY
Decide how exactly you want to build the kid’s bed, how tall it will be and what features you want to include underneath the loft bed. These features could include shelving, toy chests, built in desk space, or a closet. This is the most important step in building the loft bed. Without proper planning and a good set of blueprints, which you can easily find online, this project is much more difficult than it has to be.
Once you have your plans, purchase the necessary wood and materials. You’ll most likely need: wood, measuring tape, saw (circular, table, or miter saws work best), screwdriver set and/or ratchet set, wood screws, sandpaper and paint or varnish.
Measure and cut the wood according to your plans. Remember to measure twice and cut once in order to minimize the amount of mistakes during cutting. The most common configuration is to start out with a 4 x 8 foot frame made of 2×4′s and go from there to create the supporting posts and optional underneath features (toy chests, desk, dresser, etc).
The final step of the installation is the finishing step. Sand all of the wood components until smooth, and then paint or varnish to wood the color of your liking. This will also help protect the wood for added durability. Just remember to keep a window open while applying paint or varnish, because the fumes can be very toxic.
Lofts bed are great because they create a room within a room. A student can have an large desk, or a desk and dresser under the bed. When they get tired, they literally climb upstairs to go to bed. If you are a clothes horse, Raising your bed and adding a curtain will create a walk in closet without impeding in your roommates space. They can also keep people from sitting on your bed, which many people find unsettling. But if loft beds are so great, why are more and more colleges not allowing them?